Harmony Reigns as Ancelotti and Real Madrid Proves a Winning Combination

Real Madrid's head coach Carlo Ancelotti watches the Spanish La Liga match between Cadiz and Real Madrid at the Nuevo Mirandilla stadium in Cadiz, Spain, Sunday, May 15, 2022. (AP)
Real Madrid's head coach Carlo Ancelotti watches the Spanish La Liga match between Cadiz and Real Madrid at the Nuevo Mirandilla stadium in Cadiz, Spain, Sunday, May 15, 2022. (AP)
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Harmony Reigns as Ancelotti and Real Madrid Proves a Winning Combination

Real Madrid's head coach Carlo Ancelotti watches the Spanish La Liga match between Cadiz and Real Madrid at the Nuevo Mirandilla stadium in Cadiz, Spain, Sunday, May 15, 2022. (AP)
Real Madrid's head coach Carlo Ancelotti watches the Spanish La Liga match between Cadiz and Real Madrid at the Nuevo Mirandilla stadium in Cadiz, Spain, Sunday, May 15, 2022. (AP)

Even Carlo Ancelotti, the calm and carefree Italian, whose return to Real Madrid has been as harmonious as it has been successful, will get the jitters before Saturday's Champions League final against Liverpool.

No manager has reached as many Champions League finals as Ancelotti's five, with the 62-year-old winning three of his previous four, the first with AC Milan almost two decades ago, back in 2003, AFP said.

But experience has not made the build-up to the biggest games any easier.

"The most stressful moment is always in the three or four hours before the game. It's a physical thing and I've struggled with it a bit more this season," Ancelotti said at a press conference on Tuesday, a smile coming across his face.

"There is a lot of sweating, the heart beats faster and those negative thoughts creep in. Believe me, there is no tablet or medicine you can take. You just have to put up with it."

As Ancelotti spoke, journalists laughed and shortly after, the players laughed too, Ancelotti beginning his training session at Valdebebas with a short speech, the squad huddled round, applauding as it finished.

"For now it's about enjoying it," said Ancelotti. "We are calm, they are calm. Everyone is happy, there is a good atmosphere.

"As we get closer to the match there will be all the other things, some nerves, which is all very normal. Today it's just about really looking forward to playing in another final."

Ancelotti's ability to manage and motivate players means his tactical nous perhaps get overlooked.

Real Madrid won La Liga with four games to spare, finishing 13 points ahead of Barcelona. In the early months, Ancelotti successfully fixed Madrid's defence, which had been ripped apart after the departures of Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane.

- 'Motorbike' Vinicius -
He found a way of playing that unleashed Vinicius Junior, the 21-year-old Brazilian, who he said had "a motorbike in his boots" and who this season has been one of the deadliest forwards in the world.

He unashamedly played deeper, which suited Vinicius and Karim Benzema on the break, and accommodated a classy but ageing midfield.

"(Jurgen) Klopp and (Thomas) Tuchel, the German school of tactics, they have brought more intensity in recent years," Ancelotti said.

"I don't think I'm from an older generation, I watch the changes in football, what is happening and what will happen next.

"But the most important thing is the characteristics of the players you have. It's about what's in front of you, not what's in your head.

"You can't press with a striker who is fat."

Yet Real Madrid's success this season has come less from the system or the style than Ancelotti's connection with the players. Every controversy has come and gone, the player and team always put ahead of his own ego and reputation.

When Toni Kroos showed his frustration at being substituted, Ancelotti said "he got annoyed with the manager not the man".

When Real Madrid were thrashed at home by Barcelona, he said: "We have to keep perspective, we can't lose our heads."

Even the sidelining of Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale has happened without fuss.

- 'Not a single mess this season' -
During the semi-final against Manchester City, Kroos said Ancelotti asked the veteran players for advice about substitutions in extra time.

"That describes perfectly the manager he is and why he works so well with this team," Kroos said.

"I haven't had a single mess this season," said Ancelotti.

Ancelotti's arrival last year came as a surprise, not least to Real Madrid. The decision came after a chance conversation between Ancelotti and the club's president Florentino Perez.

For Madrid, it was a safe appointment, a coach for the short-term who could be hired easily and, perhaps, fired without too much trouble.

For Ancelotti, it was an unexpected and , probably, final chance to work at the very highest level.

For club and coach, it has gone much better than expected, a La Liga title already in the bag and now a 14th European Cup in sight.

"I knew about the quality of these players but what has surprised me is how they have kept their seriousness, their humility and professionalism," said Ancelotti.

"Players who have made history haven't changed, that's impressive."



Ferrari Wins the 24 Hours of Le Mans for Third Year in a Row

 The 24 Hours of Le Mans - Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France - June 15, 2025 AF Corse's Robert Kubica, Yifei Ye and Philip Hanson celebrate with the chequered flag after winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans. (Reuters)
The 24 Hours of Le Mans - Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France - June 15, 2025 AF Corse's Robert Kubica, Yifei Ye and Philip Hanson celebrate with the chequered flag after winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans. (Reuters)
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Ferrari Wins the 24 Hours of Le Mans for Third Year in a Row

 The 24 Hours of Le Mans - Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France - June 15, 2025 AF Corse's Robert Kubica, Yifei Ye and Philip Hanson celebrate with the chequered flag after winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans. (Reuters)
The 24 Hours of Le Mans - Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France - June 15, 2025 AF Corse's Robert Kubica, Yifei Ye and Philip Hanson celebrate with the chequered flag after winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans. (Reuters)

Ferrari won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the third year running Sunday but a late surge from Porsche Penske Motorsport denied the Italian manufacturer a podium sweep.

The No. 83 Ferrari 499P crew of Robert Kubica, Ye Yifei and Philip Hanson took the win as Ferrari won for the 12th time in the 102nd edition of the storied race. Their bright-yellow car, privately entered by the AF Corse team, got the better of Porsche and the two official factory-entered Ferraris.

Kubica took the checkered flag after a marathon spell at the wheel Sunday afternoon to make sure of the win.

“It has been a long 24 hours,” Kubica said to his team over the radio and thanked them in Italian. “Enjoy.”

The Penske-operated No. 6 Porsche 963 of Kévin Estre, Laurens Vanthoor and Matt Campbell surged late in the race to finish second ahead of the two other Ferraris, 14 seconds behind the winner.

For Kubica and Ye, it was redemption after their car — then with Robert Shwartzman as third driver — was a strong contender to win last year's race before a crash, a penalty and finally a race-ending mechanical failure.

It’s a career highlight for 40-year-old Polish driver Kubica, whose promising Formula 1 career was interrupted in 2011 when a crash while competing in a rally left him with severe injuries.

Kubica is the first driver from Poland to win Le Mans outright, and Ye is the first from China to achieve that feat.

“It’s a great story that we finally put a perfect ending with Robert,” Ye told broadcasters. “It looks easier from the outside than it is in the car. It’s just unbelievable.”

Ferrari was off the pace in qualifying, with the two factory cars 7th and 11th on the grid and the eventual winner 13th. But once tennis great Roger Federer waved the starting flag Saturday, Ferrari’s pace over long race runs soon became clear.

After a close fight with Toyota in last year’s race, this time Ferrari often seemed in near-total control. Early Sunday morning, it was on target for the first top-class podium sweep by one manufacturer since 2012.

Ferrari didn’t have it all its own way in the final hours, though.

Alessandro Pier Guidi spun in the No. 51 car on his way into the pits, losing the lead, while the resurgent No. 6 Porsche piled on the pressure.

Le Mans is as much a test of drivers’ resilience as it is the cars’ reliability. Both held up well in an unusually calm race that avoided much of the usual nighttime drama with few significant crashes and just one safety-car period.

Polish team Inter Europol Competition won the LMP2 class and Manthey won the GT3 class in a Porsche 911.